SPECIAL SECTION Citizen input is key Throughout all of these initiatives, one of the most important aspects of imple- NRB turns menting them has been citizen involve- ment at NRB meetings. The board takes STATE OF WISCONSIN NATURAL citizen comments on almost all rules and decisions it considers. RESOURCES BOARD MARKS The idea of public input is a key part MILESTONE ALONGSIDE THE DNR. of the board’s history. “In 1933, the Con- servation Commission authorized public 50 hearings to gather input,” Thomas wrote Paul Holtan in her history of the board. At meetings these days, it’s not uncom- This year’s 50th anniversary of the Department of Natural mon for the board to listen to comments Resources goes hand-in-hand with another milestone: 50 years from dozens of citizens. People can regis- of the State of Wisconsin Natural Resources Board. ter to testify on any agenda item noticed for testimony at a given meeting or to testify under “citizen participation,” bringing to the In 1967, the state Legislature approved and budget proposals from department board’s attention any concerns they have the report of the Kellett Commission, staff must be approved by the board be- on state natural resources management. established by Gov. Warren Knowles to fore advancing for legislative or guberna- Current Board Chairman Terry Hilgen- study the reorganization of state govern- torial review and approval. berg says public engagement is a critical ment. A year later, the Kellett Reorgani- part of being an NRB member. “The more Coho salmon stocking, 1968, and waterfowl banding, circa 2000. zation Bill merged the departments of Important work to be done people we have engaged, the better the Conservation, which included wildlife, The decade that followed the creation of the process will be.” He adds this is especial- fisheries and forestry management, and NRB was one of significant work. Christine ly true in situations where there are many Resource Development, whose Water Re- Thomas, dean of the College of Natural divergent voices to be heard. sources Division was responsible for envi- Resources at the University of Wisconsin- “The biggest challenges are when we ronmental protection functions. Stevens Point, wrote a thorough history are dealing with controversial issues,” he of the NRB published in the spring 1991 says. On deer management, for instance, Environmental History Review. “everyone has an opinion on deer.” Each “The increased awareness of environ- year the NRB must approve deer population mental degradation resulted in a prolif- and harvest goals for the upcoming seasons. eration of state and federal environmental “More public engagement strengthens FIVE-DECADE TIMELINE TELLS TALE OF DNR DEDICATION AND ENDURANCE. regulations,” wrote Thomas, who herself our ability to balance what is in the best served on the NRB from 2004 to 2015. interest of not just an individual but the Kathryn A. Kahler and Andrea Zani Throughout that early period, the board general public,” Hilgenberg says. “I reach oversaw new rules to implement the fed- out to CDAC (County Deer Advisory eral Clean Air and Clean Water acts and Council) members to see what is going on Quite a lot can happen in 50 years, to be sure. And when that half-century involves a approved a State Endangered Species Act. (in their counties). We have to weigh the government agency with work as wide-ranging and comprehensive as the Wisconsin DNR FILES The board guided implementation of the science presentation of DNR staff and the Current members of the State of Wisconsin Safe Drinking Water Act and was behind input of CDACs, the public and legisla- Department of Natural Resources, the sheer volume of the highlights can be prodigious. Natural Resources Board are, from left: one of the most comprehensive ground- tors and come to a balanced decision.” Gary Zimmer, William Bruins, Dr. Frederick water protection acts in the nation. Despite the challenges, Hilgenberg It’s been 50 years since the DNR was “superagency” in the nation — given au- others informed the agency’s work, in- Prehn (vice-chair), Terry Hilgenberg (chair), In the 1980s, the board approved DNR says being an NRB member is extremely created through state government re- thority to regulate air and water quality, as cluding landmark legislation such as the Julie Anderson (secretary), Preston Cole air program studies that led to the first rewarding. He particularly enjoys being organization prompted by the recom- well as solid waste disposal, and directed U.S. Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act and and Greg Kazmierski. rules in the nation to control acid rain and able to participate in tours of DNR proj- mendations of the Kellett Commission, to develop an integrated program to pro- Endangered Species Act, and federal laws surpassed the goal of cutting sulfur diox- ects when the board is on the road for an 18-member group appointed in 1965 tect air, land and water resources and the banning or regulating various pollutants. That action resulted in the creation ide emissions by half. In the 1990s, the NRB meetings around the state. by Gov. Warren P. Knowles and headed plants and animals dependent on them. Though certainly thorough, the time- not only of the current DNR but also its approved rules for one of the nation’s first “I have a much greater appreciation of by William Kellett. At the time, the Wis- The Natural Resources Board, also line is by no means all-inclusive. The dif- governing body, the State of Wisconsin and strongest comprehensive recycling the work department staff are doing after consin Conservation Department was new, was tasked with guiding the DNR. ficulty comes not in finding efforts, events Natural Resources Board (NRB). This was programs and also oversaw implementa- having the hands-on opportunity of see- responsible for managing the state’s The first board consisted of four mem- and accomplishments to point out, but in done by merging members of the two tion of the Knowles-Nelson Stewardship ing it in the field,” he says. “It makes us fisheries, wildlife, forests and parks, and bers from the former Conservation Com- culling from the enormous list. department’s previous oversight boards Program, which has protected more than appreciate the fees and grants the depart- enforcing laws protecting fish and game, mission and three from the Resource De- What’s here, hopefully, will be consid- into a new seven-member citizen board. 500,000 acres of Wisconsin’s most beauti- ment receives to carry out its mission, be- while the Resource Development Depart- velopment Board, with Lester P. Voigt as ered interesting and enlightening, and The governor appoints NRB members ful and diverse lands and waters. cause as board members we have to em- ment was overseeing statewide water DNR’s first secretary. maybe just a little bit celebratory — fitting who serve without compensation, except Through the early part of the 21st centu- phasize that these are state resources and and air pollution control. The year-by-year timeline presented for a 50th anniversary. for their expenses. The state Senate must ry, the NRB guided a series of rules to over- we need to be using them efficiently.” The Kellett Commission’s call for the in these pages attempts to corral some The hope also is that the final year of confirm the appointments. Board mem- see management of hazardous materials merger of the two departments was heed- of the history of the past 50 years as it re- this particular timeline, 2018, is not an end bers serve six-year staggered terms. Paul Holtan works for the DNR Office of in Wisconsin and to develop a new Re- Communications, editing the DNR’s weekly ed, and on July 1, 1968, the DNR officially lates to the DNR and its mission. Some of but rather a beginning, a starting point for The NRB is the policy-setting body for mediation and Redevelopment Program. news and outdoor report packets and serving as came into existence. This newly created these notable occurrences involved state another 50 years — or more — of similar the DNR. All rule proposals, land acquisi- That has led to the cleanup of huPdreds of public affairs manager for the Bureau of Parks entity was viewed by many as the first resources and the DNR directly, while dedication, important service and success. tions, property management master plans contaminated properties across the state. and Recreation. Special Section: DNR at | I WNR_FINAL_Timeline_SU18.indd 1 6/5/18 10:01 AM The Department of Natural Resources and U.S. National Environmental Policy Act is signed Natural Resources Board are created through and the federal Environmental Protection reorganization of state agencies. The St. Agency is created. First Earth Day, Croix/Namekagon River system is named founded by Wisconsin Sen. Gaylord Nelson, the first wild and scenic river in the nation. is celebrated on April 22. The 1967 Clean Coho and chinook salmon strains from Air Act is expanded to create a variety of new Air monitoring van the Pacific Northwest are stocked by DNR air quality standards. Several state in Lake Michigan to help control invasive properties are established: alewife and spur recovery of other species. Yellowstone and Buckhorn state parks; Browntown-Cadiz Springs State Recreation Area; Ahnapee State Trail; and Gov. Outdoor Recreation Knowles State Forest. Act Program (ORAP) is expanded, authorizing the state Wisconsin Conservation to spend $200 million Congress receives statutory to acquire lands for recognition. Wisconsin is the outdoor recreation. first state to ban DDT pesticide. First rules regulating Ice Age National Scientific dumps take effect. Reserve is established, including First Secretary Lester P. Voigt nine units in Wisconsin. ED SCHUMANN Environmental Education Center in Poynette is named in honor of Harley MacKenzie.